Citalopram

[Lucycat]

My T is considering whether I should start taking Citalopram for depression. Has anyone else tried it and what is your experience?

He suggested it should take 2 weeks fo me to feel any effects and then a further month to reach optimum effect. He would expect me to take it for a further 6 months after that.

He thinks if it suits me I should be able to reduce and stop the Quetiapine.

 

[anthony]

Very different treatment options there... do you believe your psychotic moods are under control? Being what Seroquel is for... mood stabilization vs. Celexa / Cipramil (SSRI) anti-depressant.

Whilst SSRI's have been viewed as first line treatment for PTSD, more and more physicians are moving away from them, because they aren't working the way they should, and therapy itself in conjunction with behaviour modification on the sufferers part, is doing far better in results than medication has ever done.

If what you are on is working... why change? If its not working, then review all options IMHO, because medications are only going to make things worse for you in the short term and long term, because they will be hell to get on them, and they will be more hell getting off them.

 

[Lucycat]

Sorry, I did not make myself at all clear.

I have been taking the Quetiapine, off-license, for anxiety not for psychosis.
It has helped me very well and I had reduced it down to just a night time dose. I had tried to reduce that dose still further but have found I just cannot sleep without it.

But now I have depression. So, T has suggested I go back to my previous dose of Quetiapine- for now- while he discussses with the psychiatrist. T wants me to start the Citalopram - for depression. Once the Citalopram is doing its job, then he thinks I might be able to again reduce, and this time stop the Quetiapine. I guess you could say the Quetiapine has served its purpose, anxiety is basically under control and I am now using Q as a sleeping medication.

I am still having therapy, so I appreciate the meds are only a crutch, and it is the work in therapy that will ulimately help me.

I am working full time, and finding it increasingly hard to do so. I have a responsible job, that I had always enjoyed. But at the moment I am just not enjoying life at all. I hope the change in meds will help me back onto an even keel. I am usually a positive, optimistic person and find this very hard to endure. I am concerned that if I am on Q. and Citalopram at the same time I might be a zombie for a few days.

 

[Lucycat]

Oh well. It doesn't matter any more. Apparently I'm not depressed - just in a 'submissive state'. To be treated with more EMDR instead of pills.

 

[anthony]

Sounds all a bit mix and match for you BL.

 

[Lucycat]

and here I am many months later finally been started on Citalopram after all. I am now on my second week. I am still taking the Quetiapine and still having therapy.

I am taking the Citalopram reluctantly.
I am getting the usual side effects from something new. Had some nausea - but that now seems to have passed. What I am finding more worrying is joint and muscle pains. I am waking in the morning feeling like I have been kicked by a horse. At first I did not put that down to the pills, but have just read that it is a known and pretty common side effect.

I will be seeing my GP, Sian, again on Tuesday, so will tell her then, but I doubt she will want me to stop. It is very difficult as I don't want to be an awkward patient. I value the support of my GP and I understand that she is following a policy or protocol. Recently I have seen 2 other GPs as well and they will be questioning and scrutinizing the decisions that Sian makes. Sian knows my full history, the other 2 just saw me in a crisis with no background to go on and could not get why I was not already on anti-depressants.

 

[Girl Power]

Hello I am quite new to all this but found this discussion quite interesting as I've been having the same battle with taking anti-depressants.

I was sexually abused by my father from a small child into my late teens and it has had a pretty profound effect on my life but I've always kept it buried away and not really dealt with it. The last few years have been hard as I was in a 9 year relationship with someone (married for 4) who turned out to be someone who abused me emotionally for years after we married and took 1000's from me and put me into a lot of debt. We finally divorced 2 years ago which was a difficult and painful experience but as always my Dad who did all he could to stop me marrying my ex (which in hindsight was a probably a helpful thing - but I put it down to him trying to control my life) starting interfering in my life again and trying to control me again. Obviously as no one in my family knows I was abused I find it hard to cut him out of my life and in a way I'm starting to see after having counselling for the last 7 months that he uses any way he can to control me and possibly abuse me (emotionally/mentally).

Last year I lost my job so was in a bad way and I was back at home for a week when my Dad completely lost it on me and almost hit me when I came back late from meeting friends. I was 31 years old and he was treating me like a kid that I shouldn't be back in his house late! From that point everything came back to me. All the memories of the sexual and physical abuse came back, I was having nightmares and contemplated suicide. I fell out with some my best friends too as I felt they weren't supporting me (although they didn't know the extent of what I had been through).

I then finally went to the doctor on a friends advice (one I fell out with) and they said I was verging on depression and put me on citalopram. It was a low dose and my moods settled. I guess it took off the edge. However the feeling of depression never really went away and the memories. It just calmed me down. I moved away and saw a new doctor and he increased the dose and then I started private counselling. The counselling has been really helpful but we still have a long way to go.

I think its only in the last month we've been talking more about the abuse and how it really makes me feel about myself and how I relate to men. This has bought a whole load of emotions to the surface. I was on holiday last week and forgot my pills which was a very bad idea because it's really put me on edge again and I feel extremely down. On top of that the holiday made me feel more emotional as it was my cousins hen do and she is the last of the girls in our family to settle down (and I'm 32). I was feeling so rubbish like I would never have a 'normal' relationship because of what I've been through and after we got back I was talking a lot to her about what I've been through and I ended up (with a lot of pushing from her) disclosing the abuse by my Dad. She was shocked but gave me a lot of advice and support and said she was on my side. She even suggested a forum like this might help me and it has as it's good to know I'm not alone and I'm not 'crazy'.

Anyway being off the citalopram has been a bad idea and been back on for the last 4 days but it may take up to 2 weeks to have its full effect as I'm still having nightmares and feel like I'm going to break down any minute. But honestly I'm not sure these are the right ones for me. I have talked to other people who have been diagnosed with depression due to PTSD and prescribed other tablets (I think ciprimill) and apparently these help to soften the impact of bad memories as this is what has been getting to me and causing my depression to get worse I think!

I'm going to talk to my doctor about it this week as I don't think I've been diagnosed properly. I was just asked to fill out a questionnaire and then prescribed the citalopram and sent on my way and told to read the leaflet she had given (no thought for the fact I don't know anything about depression and that it can be a scary thing to get your head around)! I've only been seen by a doctor once since then and he just put me on a higher dose on repeat prescription! Maybe because I don't know a lot about depression its quite scary to challenge the doctor and disclosing what I've been through can be quite difficult. But it would be interesting to know what makes a doctor decide what the right medication for you is and when you should start coming off them. I feel I'm not there yet with my counselling, which is why I still need the tablets but honestly I don't feel my doctors have been very supportive or sympathetic.

< Edited for readability by Brucielucy >

 

[Lucycat]

Hi Girl Power,
Thanks for sharing your experience of Citalopram.

I think that forgetting your pills while you were away was very unfortunate. It is likely that it is the cause of you feeling worse again. My cousin was also taking it and stopped 'cold turkey' ( as advised by her nurse :mad:) and suffered horrendous withdrawals. She was then put back on it, but taking 'drops' rather than pills so she could reduce it very gradually. She has now successfully stopped it and is fine.

My doctor wants me to continue until August and then stop. She knows my concerns about stopping as I told her about my cousin's experience. So when I do stop it will be very gradual. Incidentally my cousin was needing it because she was also sexually abused by my father.

The 'guidelines' that doctors follow determine what they use as their first choice of drug. This will vary from place to place and country to country, but should always be based on the latest research. Of course not all drugs are available in all countries. Apparently for Citalopram the guidelines here suggest a minimum of 6 months from when it starts to have an effect. It really was a couple of months before I could be sure it was helping, hence the plan to stop in August - after a total of 8 months. I like have a plan in place rather than feeling it is open ended.

I agree with you that it is only a crutch, and really it is the talk therapy that will make a difference.

 

[Lucycat]

Just reading back through this. In fact I stopped the citalopram after 3 months - not the 8 I suggested above. I hated feeling like a zombie, and in fact got better 'too quickly' after starting it for my T to be convinced it was anything to do with the citalopram.

When I told my GP I had stopped she said she did not expect any different!! I can't believe that is now a year ago.